Passing on
by BlueLikeSabo
Summary: Two spirits on a rooftop must come to terms with what awaits them in the very near future. (Notes inside!)


**Hello,unfortunate soul who has stumbled upon my mess!**

**I'd just like to make a few disclaimers before I plunge you into the abyss:**

**This is my first work on this site and its likely bad. Constructive criticism is always appreciated!**

**Spoilers...spoilers everywhere. DO NOT READ if you haven't watched SnK all the way through.**

**I own nothing but the plot.**

**Enjoy,my dear noodle!**

* * *

"Captain Levi! Please give Armin the injection!"

A hot breeze carried the ashes of the flaming houses, sprinkling it over the rooftop. Eren was facing Levi, an unconscious Bertholt lying close by. Armin's brow creased.

"Eren! I'm alright! Save the injection for someone else!"

His voice sounded eerie and hoarse. His frown deepened. Eren continued talking to Levi,who was smouldering slightly from being drenched in titan blood. Why was he ignoring him? Armin called again and again,but his friend remained impassive to his calls.

As he took a step forward to rest his hand on Eren's shoulder, the blond felt his boot collide with something hard and crunchy. Blue eyes drifted down and met the sight of a blackened,mutilated corpse.

Armin recoiled,eyes shooting wide and hands flying to cover his mouth. A stinging sensation rose from his stomach as he took in the sight of his own lifeless body. Instantly, the smell of burnt flesh hit him and he gagged,pulling the green wool of his cape over his nose and mouth.

He dared to look around at all the destruction around them. His hometown. All reduced to little more than smoking plies of wood and brick. His eyes stung from the smoke and ash. His breathing became shallow and his knees buckled.

How was this all happening? He was supposed to be dead! Yet,he could experience the tragedy vividly. Every sound,smell and sight seared itself into his brain. He knew he shouldn't panic,but he honestly had no idea what to do.

Metallic whizzing broke him from his frantic thoughts. At the other end of the rooftop,Mikasa stood still as a statue. Her hand was buried in her bloodstained hair and her eyes glistened with unshed tears. He called for her,desperately reaching out with tears in his own eyes. She remained motionless. Simply staring.

Terrified, ,the blonde curled in on himself and buried his face into his knees. Something impossibly soft and soothing wrapped around him,but he barely registered the feeling.Only when he let out a tearful whine did he realise he was shaking. He ignored the sounds of more people arriving and Eren yelling something he couldn't quite catch.

"Armin. You're here too?"

The blond started at the voice of his commander. He immediately whipped himself up and into a salute,secretly missing the soothing feeling that had enveloped him. Armin looked around for the source of the voice and gasped when he spotted it.

Erwin stood not even two meters ahead of him,looking as fresh and polished as if he'd just been dry-cleaned. His skin was flawless and smooth. Even the stump that had been in place of his left arm had grown back. That was not the most surprising thing about him,though.

From his back,right where the Wings of Freedom rested,sprouted two enormous wings. One white and sparkling like freshly fallen snow. One a rich blue-black that glistened in the morning light.

So awed was Armin that he completely forgot what was going on behind the commander.

The elder blond stepped forward with a small smile. "You have a pair of your own,Armin. Did you not realise it before?"

Armin blinked and craned his head back. On his back where the identical wings his commander had. He tentatively reached up to touch them. They felt light and silky,like touching the garments of a goddess. He cast a questioning glance back at Erwin,who let out a small breath. He looked over his shoulder at the scene on the desolate rooftop. Floch was yammering on on why the injection should be used on Erwin while the others listened quietly.

"I do believe we're in the in-between. Not alive. Not quite dead either. Awaiting our final verdict from the living. Odd as it may seem,I was here not to long ago. I got lucky,however. This time,I fear my luck may have run out"

The young blond who was watching his friends intently snapped his gaze up. "Sir... you can't mean-"

Erwin silenced him by laying his hands on Armin's tiny shoulders. The weight of his commander's hands were abnormally heavy and his stone blue eyes were laced with the same heaviness. Erwin regarded Armin's slim form for a few more moments before speaking again.

"Armin ,I'm afraid my time has come. I will be leaving soon...and I need you to take over for me."

The boy's jaw fell open.

"S-sir! I can't! Humanity needs you! I'm no hero. I'll never give them the victory that is owned to them! Please!"

Armin knew he was smart. He'd been told that numerous times in his unfortunately short lifetime. He could make effective plans. He could sacrifice for the greater good. Yet,he lacked in so many other places. No. Humanity didn't need him. It needed Erwin Smith.

The grip on his shoulders tightened ever so slightly.

"Listen, Armin. I know you don't think much about yourself,but I do. I believe you can take the mantle and free our fellow humans. You're bright and brave. Impossibly so."

Erwin dropped his arms. He subconsciously turned back to Levi and the others. A million memories flashed through his mind as he watched the man he'd grown to trust more than his own intuitions. Humanity's strongest. Armin silently came to stand at his side,expectant blue eyes trained on his superior.

"I... have many regrets. I'll never be able to prove my father right. I'll never be able to tell Levi or Hange how much I value them. These regrets I'll need to take to my grave. Despite this, I'm content.,"

He turned to Armin,who blinked owlishly.

"As my last request as commander of the Survey Corps,I ask you,Armin Arlert of the 104th,to take my mantle and wear it proudly. Bring hope to the hopeless and light to the dark. Strive to save humanity and...to be a better man than I was. Here."

Erwin hung his brooch neatly around the boy's small neck. Armin gasped,running his fingers over the stone. A twisted maelstrom of emotions swirled in his eyes before one finally settled and burned hot and bright. Determination.

His arms flew to his chest and back, honouring his commander with a final,brilliant salute. Armin sucked in a deep breath and proclaimed his words proudly and fiercely.

"I, Armin Arlert of the 104th, hereby swear to uphold the standards and examples laid before me by my Commander,Erwin Smith. I will honour his name in my quest to free humanity and discover the truth of this world. This oath shall be sealed and upheld by the goddesses Maria,Rose and Sina!"

Just as the sun peaked over wall Rose, casting its warm orange gleam over the melancholy battlefield, Levi inserted the syringe into Armin's arm.

The two blondes watched the body slowly reform and morph into a mindless titan. Bertholt had been placed on the edge of the roof. A ready snack.

A sort of fizzing feeling came over them and they looked down at their arms. They were starting to fade. Erwin's wings were becoming more solid while Armin's where fading along with him.

The older blond cast one final glance at Levi and then at Armin. His features were pure bliss as his wings fully materialized. With a sudden bright flash,he was gone. Armin mournfully watched the spot where his commander stood as he too dissapeared.

_Inside the mindless titan carrelessly sprawled on the ragged ground,a reborn Armin Arlert gulped in his first greedy breath._

_At the same time,Erwin Smith ,comforted by the voices of his friends around him,breathed his final breath in the mortal world._


End file.
